Just a Kiss
by shadeslayerprincess111
Summary: Before Saphira's egg, Carvahall was just a normal place. Katrina was supposed to marry Albriech, and her best friend Reina was supposed to marry Baldor.Things don't go as planned, and they both fall for someone else:Roran.


_She was the purest beauty_

_But not the common kind_

_She had a way about her_

_That made you feel alive_

_And for a moment_

_You made the world stand still_

_Lady Antebellum, _

_We owned the Night_

**Hey guys! So, I had this random idea from reading one of my sister's, ConfederatePrincess,stories. (It's really good, if ya wanna read a good LOTR story, it's called "You must love me"**

**So basically, it takes place before Eragon even found Saphira's egg. He is a minor character, and should be about 14 in the story. Roran however is a more major character, and I don't know how old he should be, but let's say about 17-18ish. It takes place in Carvahall (It's such a cute little village, and I wish I lived there. So I had to do it some justice.) Oh, and some of the costumes are inspired by the costumes in the Marie Antoinette movie. I know its Alageasia, not France, but I really like historical costumes, so deal with it. **

**Disclaimer: I do not own The Inheritance Cycle, or Carvahall or its occupants. Or anything else that inspired this. Or a squirrel. But how awesome would that be?**

**Here it goes! (Finally)**

I bounced on my toes. I was nervous and she should be. It wasn't that i hadn't met him before-I had. They had practically grown up together. I stared out the window at the big flakes of snow drifting down onto the freshly covered ground. Soon, it would be muddy, but it was beautiful now. I looked at my new dress. It was by far the fanciest dress I'd ever seen, much less owned. It should belong to the wife of a noble in Teirm, not me. I didn't know what the color should exactly be. It was kinda a bluish sea green. Rather too bold, if you ask me. But no one did. The lace on the sleeves made it just the tiniest bit gaudy. It was defiantly not a dress to wear in the middle of winter, either. Luckily, I had a new wool cloak so I wouldn't freeze to death. I gingerly lifted it of my bed. It looked like something princesses wore in faeire tales. It looked like it would break if I touched it. But, I was freezing standing in only my underclothes, so I began to unlace the back. I was about to slip it over my head when my bedroom door opened. I quickly crushed the dress to my chemise. I was expecting my mother. She would have stared at me and would begin to yell at me for not being dressed. But it was only Katrina. At 16, my best friend was far prettier than I."Are you excited? You are going to meet him today!" She bubbled. "Hurry up and put your dress on! I want to see how it looks."

"Katrina," I began as I pulled the dress over my head. From inside, I continued as I worked my arms into the tight sleeves. "And I'm not 'meeting' Baldor. We practically grew up together." I emerged from the dress and turned around so Katrina could lace it up.

"This dress is gorgeous! She exclaimed. I looked at her cream colored cream coat dress. "I would rather wear what you have on. This looks like something a lady of the Empire would wear, not me." Katrina laughed.

Well I love it. There." She finished the laces and spun me around so I could see myself in the smudged mirror. Behind me, Katrina smiled brightly. But I didn't. The bright teal-ish dress engulfed me. Smothered me. I took a huge breath held it in. At least that gave me some bosom. Katrina and I giggled.

"I look like…I don't even know! I look awful!" I wailed.

"You look fine!" Katrina reassured me. At another look, it made me seem less scrawny. The corseted waist gave me the slightest bit of a figure. The full skirt hid my un-attractively skinny legs, but the tight three-quarter length sleeves with the flair at the end made my arms seem even skinnier. The low bodice showed of the fact that I wasn't particularly generous in the chest area. The whole dress clashed with my wildly curly, shoulder-length dark reddish orange hair. The shade of the dress didn't sit right with my big green eyes that I hated. They made me look like I was thirteen not, sixteen. They made me look so innocent.

"My hair…" I mumbled. I wished it wasn't quite so, well, bright. Almost everyone in Carvahall had plain, normal, hair. Well, everyone except Elaine and Baldor **(I'm not sure if it's him or Albriech but, my copy of **_**Eldest**_** is missing**!), who in fact, had honey-colored hair. Katrina's hair was slightly too brown to be called auburn.

"Katrina, help me! I need a different dress!" Unfortunately, My mother came in and gasped before Katrina could respond.

"Oh! I knew that dress was going to be stunning on you, Reina! Do you like it?" I had never been close to my mother. She was always down in Teirm with my grandmother when she was sick or in Kuasta with her sister. She was rarely home, and when she was she was worrying about money. That's why my father wanted me to marry Baldor, Horst's son. They were the richest family in Carvahall. We had been one of the more wealthy families in Carvahall-which wasn't saying much in the poor village. We had been rich until my father had taken the harvest to sell in Ceunon. It had been a great harvest. We were selling what we didn't need. But, he went to a tavern, spent some money on ale and lost all of it in a drunken session of gambling. We were deeply in debt. That's why I thought it was silly to buy a gaudy dress. But, no one in Carvahall knew. My father had to keep his status. My parents were very aloof members of the village. I knew everyone, and they accepted me. I was going to "meet" Baldor in less than an hour. But we already knew me. He had pushed into Quimby's pond twice. Once when I was six, and once when I was ten. When we children, everyone knew each other. Why, he had made up hundred s of cruel nicknames for me. But, then he had left for Therinsford two years ago to learn how to be a master smith. Before that, he had gotten really shy for about two years and would _not_ talk to girls. He was 17 now. I hoped he had grown out of it.  
>"Well, do you?" My mother's question brought me back to reality.<p>

"Yeah, it's nice." I sighed.

"Well, hurry; let's get your hair done! Katrina, can you hand me that comb?"

"It's no use, my hair won't cooperate. "I told them. But it was no avail. My mother had to ensure that this marriage went through. She had to keep herself outfitted in silks and velvets, and she had to have expensive wine. Katrina shrugged, and began to try to tame my wild mane.

"Ow! Don't pull my hair out!" I snapped.

"Sorry, Reina." Katrina apologized. I realized my nerves had gotten the better of me, so I apologized too.

"Sorry I snapped at you. I'm nervous."

"I figured that. It's alright." She proceeded to tug the comb through the thick curls. By the time she was done, my scalp tingled. My mother tried to arrange it stylishly, but it kept popping out of the pins. Finally, she settled with it loose. I slipped on the ill-fitting slippers. They were covered with tiny fake pearls, petite bows, and they had a heel. I hated them. They were ugly, and would be ruined in the snow. My feet would get wet, and I would have to sit through the meeting with cold feet. I studied myself in the mirror as my mother looped as string of fake pearls around my neck. She murmured something about a hair net. I guess I was slightly pretty, in an exotic sort of way. But, in the dress, I looked fake. The rouge my mother had demanded I wear struggled against my vibrant red hair. My eyes looked huge, and I looked like I was trying to be something I was not. I began bouncing on my toes.

"Are you going to do that all day, or are you ready to go?" My mother asked me. I took a deep breath. This was it.

**A/N**

**Well? Did ya like it? Was it crap? (That's what the review button is for. Go ahead! Hit it! It won't bite! I hope I didn't make Reina a Mary Sue. Did I? I really tried not to make her extremely beautiful. She's thin, but scrawny, unhealthy, almost. It's going to get better, I promise. If you have any questions, REVIEW! *Begging* PLEASE!**


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